


Silent Heart

by ginnekomiko



Series: Patchwork [2]
Category: Amnesia (Game & Anime)
Genre: Creative License, F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-09-18
Updated: 2018-04-20
Packaged: 2018-04-21 09:03:59
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 9
Words: 6,254
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4823156
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ginnekomiko/pseuds/ginnekomiko
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The girl wakes up in Heart World to find something else is missing along with a good chunk of her memories. Part of Patchwork.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

When she awoke, she was staring at the white ceiling of a hospital.

 _Ah! Thank goodness!_ said the small voice inside her head. _You remember me, right?_

She murmured his name, but no sound came out.

_That's right! I'm Orion! Huh?_

She moved her lips again. They were sore, and cracked. It hurt to breathe. Sound. There was supposed to be sound.

_I can hear your thoughts, but your voice is... were you able to speak before?_

She touched her hand to her throat. Yes, but now.... She did notice her neck was covered in bandages. It wasn't just her neck, either. Everything from her arms down to her legs was bandaged up.

_Let's see... Ah! Your bed has the name 'Hina' on it! Isn't that what you told me you thought your name was?_

She nodded gently.

_Then that must be it! Ouch! Being connected like this makes me feel all this pain you're feeling. Do you suppose you were in a car accident or something?_

She would have shrugged her shoulders, but even that felt like too much. She turned her attention towards the door when she heard the knob turn.

"Oh. You finally woke up," said a boy.

 _GAH! WHO IS THIS GUY?_ Orion screamed.

Hina smiled. She _knew_ him.

_Huh? You mean you know this scary- looking guy?_

"What's with that dumb look?" the boy asked as he leaned in close to her. "Are you still sleep? Should I chase the sandman away?"

_What does he mean by-? GAH! WHY IS HE KISSING YOU? ER ME! I MEAN US! IS THIS ALLOWED? I'M DISCONNECTING! ORION OUT!_

When their lips parted, the boy looked at her quizzically. "Huh? I was half-expecting you to be flustered. Does this mean you're okay with maybe going a little further? If you don't say no, I'm going to take it as a yes. When he leaned in again and put his hands near her chest, she flicked his forehead with two of her fingers.

"Ack! Okay, fine, enough for now." His eyes widened when he saw her hand covered in the gauze bandage.

"Man, you got pretty banged up, didn't you?" he said softly. He shook his head as if trying to ignore something. "Anyway, I came here to handle the discharge papers. I'll be back in a bit. You'd better get dressed soon because I'm not going to knock, and I not going wait for you all day. When I get back, we're going home."

_We? Are you two dating? You didn't fight him when you kissed. And he did back off when you gave him a sign to stop. Are you sure you want to go with him, Hina?_

In response, Hina gently lifted herself from the bed. The clothes that had been left for her were mostly light. It looked like warm weather from outside her window. Carefully, she peeled off her pajamas and slipped into a sundress. She glanced at herself in a nearby mirror and smiled sadly at her reflection. She looked like a mummy who had escaped its tomb. Wasn't there a movie with that plot?

_Huh. So you can remember little things. That's a start!_

She hoped she didn't scare any small children when she walked down the hall with....

"Oh, good, you got changed," said the boy as he entered the room.

She glared at him.

"What?" he said.

She gently knocked on the nearby counter with her fist.

He looked like he'd been caught doing something he shouldn't have. "I said I wasn't going to! Besides, you always are fast with getting ready anyway! Wait a second... you haven't actually said a single word to me have you?"

_Uh-oh!_

He came close to her again and looked into her eyes."Hina, can you... not speak?"

She nodded.

He pulled her close to him and sighed deeply. His warm breath tickled her neck. "Shit, I was afraid of something like this. Maybe you should stay here a little longer?"

_NO! NO! NO! NO!_

Hina took a small notepad out of her purse and began to write on it.

"I want to go home, Shin."

_Oh! Is that his name? Good job, Hina!_

Showing him the note seemed to calm him down. "Ah, okay, if you're sure. Heh, for a second there I was sure you forgot who I was. Okay, you took your painkillers, right?" She stared at the bottle in her purse and smiled sheepishly.

Shin sighed as he sat down beside her on the bed. "Honestly, Hina. We're not leaving until you take them."

After swallowing some of the pills, she held her arms out like a monster might and pretended to bite him on the neck.

She saw him muffle a laugh before he turned and kissed her on the tip of her nose."You dork," he said with a slight smile. He took her hand her and helped her stand up. "Come on, Ms. Mummy, I called for a cab to take us back. I was going to have you direct the cab to test your memory, but I guess I'll do it since you have no voice." When she smiled warmly at him, he blushed. "J-just take may arm, okay? I don't want you to fall over when we walk."

_Whew! We dodged that bullet! Hopefully going home will help you recover yourself faster. Huh. I actually don't hate all these warm feelings this Shin guy is giving you._


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Shin and Hina begin to work out a system to communicate, and teasing leads to kissing.

"Well, we're home," Shin said as he helped her out of the taxi. When she stepped through the door of the apartment, it didn't exactly seem unfamiliar, but at the same time... She sat down on the bed. This whole thing was making her dizzy.

"What's the matter, Hina?" Shin asked.

She pointed to her head and spun her finger around in a circle.

"Ah, you're dizzy?" Hina nodded. Shin pondered for a moment. "This no voice thing could be a problem. I won't know if you're pushing yourself or not."

"Can't I use this?" Hina wrote on the notepad.

"Yeah, that's a good idea, but we should figure out signs to use an emergency. A visual for 'I'm tried,' or 'it hurts,' like what you did just now."

 _He has a point._ Orion said. _The last thing we want is for you to collapse and not be able to call for help._

Hina put her hands together and placed her head on them. She then wrote the word "tired."

Shin nodded. "Good. What about when it hurts?"

She wrote another note. "Is it okay to pinch your arm?"

Shin paused. "Huh. I guess that makes sense. I'll sure notice it." He grinned slyly. "It's a good thing we've been dating for so long. It's our one year anniversary, you know."

"Have we? I thought it was something closer to like, six months?"

Shin grinned again. "Good job. You're thinking on your own. Well, we were going back and forth about it for awhile, but it's actually been more like three months of us seriously dating."

"But we've know one another for a long, long time, right?"

"Yeah, we have."

"I feel better now," she wrote. "I want tea. Would you like some?"

"Yeah. Barley. Don't push yourself. I'm keeping my eye on you, got it? If you can't manage, I'll get it."

Hina stood up and gently walked towards the kitchen.

 _He's looking at the scars on your legs._ Orion said. _He looks_ really _sad._

 _I'm sorry._ Shin's voice echoed in her head. _If I had been more careful, this wouldn't have happened._

Someone, was that voice her father's? Was comforting him. Hina smiled to herself.

Orion fluttered around her as she brought out the cups. He seemed more curious than anything. Hina paused for a moment after she finished pouring the tea. To walk all the way back with these full cups might be... Shin's eyes met hers, and once he realized she was signaling him, he scrambled to grab her notebook and go into the kitchen. Once he was there, she sat down at the table and smiled at him as he took the tray from the counter.

"This is going to take some getting used to for both of us, I guess," he said with a slight smile.

Hina wrote something down and showed her notebook to him."Did you apologize to my parents?"

Shin seemed surprised."You remembered something like that? Yeah, that happened. I guess you were still sort of conscious."

She touched his hand after she wrote again. "I wanted to tell you it was okay. I didn't blame you, not then, not now."

"I still feel terrible about it. I won't stop feeling shitty 'till you're better."

She grinned as she held up her notebook. "You can be my personal nurse. I don't mind."

Shin swallowed his tea with a heavy gulp. His blush was as dark as his shirt, but he smiled deviously. "Are you trying to tempt me, missy?"

"Yes."

Shin took another sip. "Want to make out on the couch?"

" **YES!!** "

That time, he almost did spit out his tea from laughter.

 _What kind of relationship do you two have with one another?_ Orion asked. He smiled. _Ah, well, as long as you're enjoying yourself. Call me after you finish the smooch-fest, okay?_

Hina took Shin's hand and lead him to the couch. She sat down and patted next to her.

"Are you serious?" he asked as he sat next to her.

In response, she pulled him closer, which caused him to sort of fall into her. His head rested on her chest for a moment and he seemed very content. Hina ruffled his hair as he tried to hide his blush.

Just before they could start to kiss, her phone rang in the tone that told her it was from her manager. She promptly texted him back.

"Are you sure you're okay with going to work?" Shin asked. He had shuffled himself around to look at her phone.

Hina smiled, texted again, and held up her phone for him to read."I have major moe appeal now! The tips from the nerd crowd should be great!"

He gently pinned her down with his bodyweight and kissed her neck. "Idiot. If you do go, I'm picking you up." Another kiss closer to her chest. "You can't stop me."

She put her phone on the table, held his face in her hands, looked him in the eye, and kissed him on the lips.

"I'll do it," he said with slight breathlessness. "I'll come and get you every day. School or no school."

She felt their hands intertwine the more they kissed. Suddenly, she remembered a secret longing of hers. She smiled up at him and kissed him again, deeper this time.

"What?" he asked with a small laugh.

Even if she could have whispered it to him, she wouldn't have. She liked this moment too much as it was. Hina reached for her phone and began to text again."Nothing. I just like smooching your face. Will you help me review for work?"

When he saw the first part of the text, Shin blushed deeply again and buried his face in her chest. "Idiot! Delete that draft right now!" He felt her laugh. Hina's heart was racing, and she felt so warm. If only they could just stay like this. Reluctantly, he slid off of her and waited while she smoothed her dress out and fixed her hair.

"Come on, let's go for a walk. I can show you around the school you go to, and then we can figure out a way for you to communicate with customers that doesn't involve you talking."

Hina thought of Orion. He would want to be a part of this, too.

_I'm back! Oh, you two are going for a walk? Good idea!_

Shin glanced at her and held out his hand awkwardly. "Well?"

Hina beamed at him and placed her hand in his. She would not let go of it, not matter what.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Shin and Hina walk to her work. Toma disapproves.

The two of them ended up walking for a while. Shin pointed out his house, her parents old house, they even passed by Hina’s university, but Shin insisted they do that tour later. He seemed to have a specific place in mind that he wanted to take her. She kept her hand firmly connected to his as he led her through the streets. It was a strange feeling, seeing this area again. Right now, it felt more like a movie she had watched a thousand times than the place where she actually lived. They stopped at a building.

Meido no Hitsuji. Why did that name ring a bell?

Hina gave a gentle pinch to Shin’s arm. “Oh, what hurts?”

She pointed to her legs.

“Too much walking?” he asked.

She nodded, but she pinched her fingers together to try to tell him it was only a little bit. She’d felt she’d done well until the last five or so minutes. That was about the point when her legs decided to give up. Still, he looked so worried.

“I see. We can take a break inside the café. Would some sweets reenergize you? I’ll buy. We can sit for a bit, and I’ll call a cab to take us home.”

Hina gave him a thumbs-up with her free hand.

“Okay.” Shin eyed her after they had sat down at a table. “You’re not pushing yourself for my sake, are you? I don’t want you to use your silence as a way to lie to me.”

She made a face at him then. It must have been a funny face, because he was snickering. “You want to yell at me for being a hypocrite, right? But you can’t do it.”

She nodded, and smiled a little. Something like that, yes.

 _He does understand you really well, despite the loss of your voice._ Orion remarked. _I’m glad for you, Hina._

True, her body still hurt, and a lot of her world had become unknown and scary, but moments like this were worth it.

“Shin, what the heck is Hina doing here? She just got discharged yesterday!” said the young man who was stationed at the door of the cafe. Somehow, this didn’t seem like normal customer relations. For one thing, he left his post, and for another, he was too informal.

 _Do you know him?_ Orion asked.

She felt like she did but…

_I see. Don’t push yourself trying to remember. You’ve done great so far, Hina!_

“She wanted to walk. So we walked,” Shin said as he eyed the man. “It just so happens she got tired around this part of town. By the way, we’re customers today.”

_Sounds like Shin knows him, too._

“Oh, forgive my rudeness then. Welcome back, Master and Madam. Can I get you anything?”

“Two black teas with milk and sugar, and a slice of chocolate cake for her.”

“Hmm? I’ve never seen this Master order for our Madam before. How interesting.”

Hina was wracking her brains. He was… he was…Toma! She was so engrossed in trying to remember that accidently knocked on the table with her hand.

“Shut up, Toma,” Shin muttered, glaring at him.

“Right, right, I’ll be right back,” Toma said as he left.

“Don’t mind him, Hina. He’s an ass.” Shin glanced at her phone. She was holding it up and waving it around as if she wanted him to see something.

“I remembered his name before you said it!!!” the text said.

Shin smirked. “On one level I’m proud of you, but on another, I’m not.”

Hina stared at him in confusion.

“Because now you remember Toma. He’s always babied you, you know, ever since we were kids. If I’m not careful, you’ll just get lazy and rely on him to take care of you.”

Was she really like that before?

Another man approached their table He was tall, older and wore glasses. “Ah, you two are customers today, I see. Welcome.”

Now, this man’s identity came to her surprisingly easy.

“Hi Waka,” Shin said. Hina followed his example and waved.

“Hina. When you’re done, come into my office so we can discuss your work hours.”

She began to text. She showed her phone to her manager.

Waka glanced over her phone. “I see. I was wondering why you didn’t give me your usual cute greeting.” With a nod, he handed it back to her. “Very well. Shin, you come in, too. The three of us can discuss an appropriate work schedule, and perhaps come up with a scenario for our cute little mute maid to play until she recovers. Enjoy.”

“Let me see that text,” Shin said as he held out his hand. Obediently, Hina handed him her phone. She watched Shin’s eyes as he skimmed through her various text drafts. “Ah, so you told him everything? Okay. You can trust him. He’ll help you if you truly want to come back to work. I’m still coming to get you, though.”

Toma brought the cake and tea. Her slice of cake seemed bigger than those around her. Shin eyed him as he left to help another table.

“See what I mean?” Shin asked.

Be that as it may, she still ate all the cake.


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hina and Shin tour her school.

After Hina had her fill of sweets, she and Shin continued their tour.

“This is your university,” Shin said as they walked through the grounds. “You’re a psychology major.”

She nodded gently.

“And this room is…” Shin said as he opened a door to one of the classrooms.

She remembered! She used to sing in this room with her friends. The warmth and laughter of her bandmates filled her thoughts until a memory hit her like a brick. Hina then texted furiously and held up her phone."You made me cry after a concert!"

Shin looked surprised."Ah, yeah I did." Her eyes demanded answers. "Well, to be frank, you sucked! You got overconfident about this new song, and when I asked to hear it, it was really underdeveloped. It was like you wanted to be praised for just coasting along. But yeah, I guess I was a bit harsh with the critique. You ended up storming out. Toma snapped at me for that. Just so you know, you got much better the second time I heard it."

 _I wonder if he felt bad about it?_ Orion wondered in her head. Hina had other matters on her mind. She texted again.

"How the heck did I become a lead vocal in a club band????"

Shin laughed a little before covering his mouth with his hand."Because you knew how you wanted your songs to sound. They always sounded the best when you sang them yourself. The others couldn't match you like that."

“But you just said that I sucked????”

That really caused him to laugh. “Not _all_ the time. Promise! Some of your songs are really nice.”

She tugged on his hand and looked at the wall.

“You want to sit down?”

She nodded.

“Okay, here, I’ll spot you so you don’t go down to fast. There you go.” He sat next to her.

 Shin looked up at the ceiling. "I confessed to you here, you know."

“I’m not surprised at that,” she wrote.

"Tell me, are you really remembering things, or is this just a convenience for you? I don't want to be a stranger to you, not after all this."

Hina paused for a moment before passing him her phone."I'm not as good of a liar as you are. This room feels like a void of many repeating days, but some of those days have warm spots. Did you visit me?"

"All the time. I'd sneak you away and steal kisses from you.” He leaned over and kissed her cheek, “like that."

She began to write again."I like your kisses. It doesn't feel like you're a stranger to me. Just... fuzzy. Warm, but fuzzy."

"Okay. Thanks."

She leaned her head on his shoulder. He put his arm around her and pulled her closer. When he turned to look at her, she gently kissed his mouth. Shin looked baffled, so she wrote again.

“I want to keep you near me. I know it’s selfish, and it probably hurts you a lot, but I feel safe with you.”

“Of course it hurts! But still, I’m glad that you said it in your own way.”

“Will you still stay with me even if I can never speak again?”

 He held her tightly. “What do you think I’m going to say? Especially after hearing that. I’m not going to leave unless you want me to.”

“Thank you. I don’t want you to go away.”

“Um, can you send me those texts? I want to keep them.”

She nodded.

Shin felt his phone buzz a few times. “Heh, this wore you out, didn’t it? Idiot, don’t hide it, you feel all limp in my arms. Are you going to be okay to walk back with me?”

“I’ll be fine. Please let me stay like this with you for a little longer.”

Shin kissed the back of her neck. “I’m not complaining.” When she turned to look at him, he smirked at her surprised face. “Did that help?” He waited for her response.

“Actually, yes. That felt good. Do you mind doing that again?”

Shin laughed. “I’ll do more than that, if you’ll let me.”

“Hmm, tempting, very tempting. Do you want to stay over in my apartment tonight?”

“C-can I? I mean are you sure you…?” Shin stammered. His eyes widened when he read her next text.

“I’m sure! <3! I want you to help me practice for work. I’ll make you dinner and everything!”

 _Wow, Hina! I think you killed him!_ Orion said.


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hina practices for work.

This was _not_ what Shin expected when he was invited over for dinner.

“Hey Hina I’m- w-why are you in that maid outfit?”

 Hina smiled and held out her phone. "Welcome, Master! <3! I figured this was what I wore to work, so I put it on to help me focus."

Shin’s entire face flushed. "Ugh, do you have to add the little hearts?"

"Conveying my tone through text is important, right? <3!"

"I-I guess."

"Master is blushing so much! <33333!"

“Damn it, why are you being so cute right now?” Shin muttered.

"Can I take your order? What would you like for dinner, Master?"

“Um, I’ll have whatever you were thinking of making for you, but I’d like some black tea with it.”

“With milk and sugar, right? <3!”

"I swear I'm going lose it. I'll pounce you, and have my way with you."

 Hina blushed. "Please be gentle with me, Master!"

"That does it!" He pushed her up against the wall and kissed her. She lifted up her neck and pointed to it. Shin paused. "Is it really okay to kiss you there...?" He gently put his lips to the scar that ran down her neck. "Does that feel good?"

 Hina beamed at him and gave him a thumbs-up.

Shin grinned. "Then maybe I should do it some more?"

 She nodded vigorously and then kissed him back. She paused for a moment to write a text.

“Say, how far did we go as a couple before all this happened?”

 Shin paused from kissing her. “Uhhhhhhh. Well…”

There was a knock at the door. “Hina, are you in? It’s me, Toma!”

Shin glanced behind him. "Stupid Big Brother Radar. He’s early. I wanted more time alone with you before he showed up. I guess he didn’t want to wait until morning." He leaned over and kissed her on the base of her neck before heading for the door. “I’ll get back to you on that question, okay?”

Hina nodded and went to answer the door.

"Oh you poor thing!" said Toma as he rushed over to her. “Did you fall down?”

After Toma pulled her up, he pulled Hina into a sudden hug.

 _Who does this guy think he is?_ Orion demanded.

Hina glanced at Shin. He didn't look mad, per say, but his face was more sullen than it had been a moment ago. This hug was going on for far too long. Hina squirmed and began to text.

"Hello Toma."

"Ah, how clever of you!" Toma placed his hand on her head and stroked her. “Oh, you’re wearing your uniform?”

This felt comforting and familiar, but... After a moment, she ducked away from his hand and began to practice her methods for work on him.

 Toma paused. "Oh, I see now, but are you sure you're ready to go back to work?"

"She needs stimulation. Working will help with that." Shin said as he looked up from his homework.

"Yes, but..." Toma began.

"Don't coddle her!” Shin snapped. “She's been working out how to adapt on her own. She _wants_ to work."

 Toma noticed Shin’s things by the table. " Huh? Do you live here now, Shin?"

Hina glared at Toma, texted furiously, and then held her phone in front of him. Shin muffled a laughed. He couldn't see what exactly Hina wrote in that text, but Toma's shocked face was priceless.

Toma cleared his throat. "I only meant to say, weren’t you supposed to be in prep school today, mister?"

"So I skipped a few days. Obviously, I had more important things to take care of. It’s not like I haven’t been studying."

Hina squeezed his hand gently. Her lips moved, but again, not a sound. "Thank you."

"You're welcome. Use your phone or notebook so I don't have to second-guess your lip movements. It wasn't a big deal, really. Anyway, you can trust Toma. And Sawa, she's a co-worker." He felt Hina pinch his arm. "What hurts?"  She pointed to her feet. Shin moved to get up, but Toma was already there with a bag ice and a fluffy pillow.

 _That was fast!_ Orion gasped.

"Really?" Shin asked as he eyed Toma.

"Thank you, Toma," Hina wrote. “But I’m okay, really…”

“Check on the rice and the tea.” Shin read aloud. “Got it.”

“Do you need help with anything, Hina?”

“Work practice.”

“Oh, okay. What do you want me to do?”

“Let me serve you, Master!” said the text.

“It’s weird, isn’t it?” Shin asked, noticing Toma’s red face.

“You can stop smirking at any time, you know,” Toma muttered.


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hina gets a visit from Sawa.

Hina’s doorbell rang. Odd, she wasn’t expecting Shin to stop by until after prep school, which wasn’t for another few hours.

The girl at her door looked pensive, but energetic. She was bouncing on her toes. Hina looked down at her phone and texted before showing the girl the screen.

“Sawa?” it read.

The girl’s face positivity lit up with a wide smile. “Oh! That’s how you’re doing it? Shin had told me you lost your voice so…”

“Come in!” the screen read.

“Oh! Right! Thank you for having me!” Sawa said stepped into Hina’s apartment and took a seat at her kitchen table. “Right! I’m going to try to pick your brain a bit about what happened.”

 _If she comes at you with anything sharp, I will bite!_ Orion remarked.

Hina smiled at him reassuringly before offering Sawa some tea after she sat down.

“Oh, thank you! Still as sweet as ever. That’s good,” Sawa said.

Hina sat down across from her. Her phone at the ready.

“Okay, so, we were all going on a vacation in Shinano. Do you remember that much?” Sawa asked as she sipped her tea. She saw Hina text and then slide her phone over to her.

“Sort of,” the text read.

Sawa passed it back to her before continuing. “Shin said you two were messing around and neither of you noticed the cliff. You tripped and…”

“I FELL OFF A CLIFF???”

Sawa chuckled a little. She could hear Hina’s shocked tone through the text so clearly. “Yeah, I know! You were covered in blood! It was really scary for all of us! The police still found Shin’s story suspicious. Even when your voice was barely there. you kept insisting it wasn’t his fault.”

“Because it wasn’t!!!!”

Sawa smiled. “You still believe in him.”

 _Hina! Are you okay? Hina!_ Shin’s voice echoed in her mind.

“Why shouldn’t I? I mean, he came to find me, right?”

Sawa paused. “No… the ones who found you were named Ikki and Kent. Do you not remember them?”

“Uh, no?”

 _Are you memories maybe mixed up?_ Orion asked.

 _Perhaps._ Hina thought. _But given what I’ve seen of him, and what I’m piecing together, I don’t think he would knowingly hurt me. Still, I wonder what “messing around” meant for us._

A smile crept across Hina’s face. If she could get him to blush again, like before when she had practiced for work, it’d be worth the slew of teasing that was sure to follow.

“Hey Hina, I have to go now, I’m on a tight schedule today,” Sawa said. She took Hina’s phone for a moment “Here, I’ll put my number in your phone. Text me at any time, okay? I’ll come visit you again soon, I promise!”

Hina nodded. Once she shut the door behind her, she went to lie down on the couch.

She wanted to see Shin.


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hina worries before she goes back to work.

Hina ended up texting Shin later that night. She did not mention the conversation with Sawa, but she did express other worries to him, and that she wanted to see him before she went to work tomorrow.

He came over within five minutes of her texting him the next morning, saying she was up and dressed.

“What’s wrong?” he asked as he entered the doorway. “You said you nervous about going back to work?”

“A little. What if I mess up? What if others stare at my neck? Or ask me questions I can’t answer.”

Shin glanced at what she wrote and made a face. “It’s only for half a day, you weenie.”  He sighed warmly. “We can cover your neck in a bandage, if you want. That should stop a lot of them from asking stupid questions. You still have some, don’t you?”

Hina went into the bathroom and came back with the box she’d been given at the hospital.

“Before you put that on, could you…kiss it and make it better?”

Shin paused for a moment, but his grin was stupidly eager, and cute. He came up behind her, held her firmly, and kissed the back of her neck, nuzzling it gently with his nose. “Like that?”

She nodded. After he let go of her, she wrote something.

“Thanks, Shin. I really needed that.”

That caused him to blush like crazy. He put his hand under his nose and looked shy for a moment. “A-any time. Text me when you get done. If you can’t handle it, let Waka or Toma know, okay? I’ll be in class today so, I don’t think I can come and get you.”

Too bad. Walking home with him sounded nice.

*

"I'm off work now!" she texted.

 _Hey! Isn't that Shin?_ Orion asked.

Hina's eyes lit up when she saw Shin coming her way; he only stopped to glance at his phone for a moment.

"What? You didn't think I'd try my hardest to show up, or something? I'm on lunch now; so I thought I'd stop by and say hi to Waka and check on you. How'd you do?"

"I thought it went well; everyone was super helpful."

"I see. Well, be sure to realize your limits." Shin grinned deviously. "You don't want me to have to apologize to everyone on your behalf."

"Don't you dare!" she wrote."Oh! We should go on a date soon! My treat~!"

"Eh? What are you implying? Just how much did your customers tip you?" Shin demanded.

Hina smiled. "A lot! I played the role of an android maid who was injured in battle trying to protect her dear master! I was a hit! Nobody minded that I didn't speak to them!"

"I see. Good work. Will you be okay going home from here? I can’t stray too far from campus."

"I know the rest of the way! I’m just glad I could see you!"

"Text me when you make it to your apartment. I'll drop by after class." Hina waved at him and then walked off with a skip in her step.

When Shin opened the door to the cafe, the little bell at the entrance rang.

"Wel- Oh! Shin!" said the manager.

"Hello, Waka. I talked with Hina just now. She says today was fine, but how was she really?"

"Well, to be honest she was much slower than usual. And getting used to reading her notes instead of talking with her was a bit odd at first, but the costumers didn't seem to mind the change. She even got a few special requests."

Oh, really? Maybe he would take her up on that date.


	8. Chapter 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Stupid Mine.

She didn’t want to think about what Mine said. This was a date. Dates made her happy.

_Shin was so calm. Even after watching his girlfriend fall off a cliff._

If she recalled correctly, Shin was always very internal with stress. Outwardly, he didn’t show it much. Toma had basically said the same thing.

_His dad killed someone you know._

Yes, she did know. She had known that for years. They were young when it happened, but not even memory loss could erase everything. Back then, she had protected him with all she had.

**_“IT WASN’T SHIN’S FAULT!!”_ **

She wrote it so hard it broke the tip of the pencil. She felt the hot tears welling in her eyes. Waka gave Mine a death-glare.

 Even now, in her pathetic state, she would protect him. This Shin, who was smiling and laughing at the dumb puns and doodles she was scribbling and then passing back to him while they waited for their meal.

This was the Shin she remembered.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I meant to post these earlier but between trying to Nano and life, it didn't happen.


	9. Chapter 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> They talk about what happened that night.

Hina hated to bring it up, but she had to know Shin’s side of what happened that night.

To his credit, Shin talked about the accident easily enough. They were walking through the park after their date. He started the conversation by saying that it was two other people that found her body, but Hina wanted to sit down so she could text her responses more easily. She patted the park bench for him to sit next to her. She watched his body language. A little fidgety, hands weaved together, but still remarkably calm.

“See, the thing is… I lied when I gave my testimony,” he said. “I said that I had jumped out of a bush to scare you, but we were actually having a bit of a heated conversation at the time.”

“Were we fighting or…?”

“I said that I wanted to try sleeping in your room with you.”

He was blushing ever so slightly, but Hina was a full tomato. It’s not like she hated the idea, but… that was a HUGE step!  No wonder past her had freaked out!

Shin laughed. “How are you blushing even _more_ than you did then? I didn’t think that was possible. Or were you maybe… thinking about it?”

Hina juggled her phone, causing her to text “ASGFHGHT!” at him.

Shin rested against her shoulder, seemingly wanting to absorb the warmth from her neck. “Sorry. I couldn’t resist.” A warm sigh tickled her neck. “Anyway, all of this is still my fault. I was using the wrong head and I almost lost you for it.”

“I probably didn’t want to have you in my room because I had people I knew from work on the trip, not from a lack of desire for you. Besides, you still saved me by asking other people to look for me and doing the most logical thing by staying behind. You knew… how it would look.”

“You’re way too nice.”

“And you’re being way too hard on yourself! Besides… would you even want me as I am now?”

“What kind of stupid question is that?” She felt him kiss her neck; they were small and repeated. “Of course I want you! All I’ve wanted to do since you’ve come home is to hold you in my arms and kiss you until things stop hurting, but my grades would plummet because I’d never want to leave you alone again. Again, wrong head.”

“Pity. That sounds nice. I like when you’re like this.”

Another string of small kisses. “Oh, you do, do you? You’re being surprisingly forward.”

“Because I nearly died with feelings unexpressed!” She adjusted her phone and held him as tightly as she could.

Shin pulled away for a moment. “After my exams.”

“Huh?”

“I think I’ll be more… emotionally ready… after my exams are done. Whether you're more recovered or not, I still want to be with you.”

“Even if you’re not ready then, just tell me, okay? Honestly, I wish I had said that instead of running off in the dark like an idiot. It would have saved us both a lot of grief. Can I hold you some more, or did you not like that?”

In response, he softly flopped against her side. “Of course I like it when you hold me. I just feel like I should be the one holding you, more than you should be holding me right now. You still feel safe with me?”

“Of course I do.”

_Then who the heck did she see that night?_


End file.
